A man with an Enfield address who claimed unemployment Jobseeker’s Allowance while he was working had his case heard in his absence at Navan District Court on Friday. Keith Stapleton Blackwater Close in the town was prosecuted for a number of counts of social welfare fraud in 2023. He had pleaded guilty and had already been convicted.
Prosecuting solicitor Liam Keane said that defendant had made declarations on three separate occasions in 2024 and at the same time as making the declarations he was working with a civil engineering company. In one of the charges there was €5,280 outstanding and in a second matter there was €9,096 making an overall total of €14,376.
He had other liabilities with the Department of Social Protection and had been making payments off those other debts, Mr Keane said. He added that, to be fair to the defendant, he was making the payments on the €9,000-odd debt. There was a standing order in place for that. He thought it would take many years to pay off. There were no previous convictions for this type of offence.
It was clear to everyone that there was no possibility of having these debts cleared in any reasonable amount of time. Defending solicitor Pauric Murray said that his client had health difficulties. This case was “weighing heavily on him”, he said. Judge Eirinn McKiernan said that, considering the amount involved, it was a very serious matter and she pointed to the fact that the defendant was not in court.
Mr Murray said “I can get him here”. He was not trying to evade the matter. A probation report on the defendant was before the court. The judge said she was considering imposing a community service order. Mr Murray said his client would be willing to do community service. The case was adjourned to 19th June to allow defendant to appear in court.
